Exceeding Your Limits Follow Up 100 Miles To Go

Exceeding Your Limits Follow Up 100 Miles To Go

I’ve had a few days to recover and let the race soak in but have had a hard time deciding on how to follow up. I think a recap of the event would tell the story the best so here we go.

Waking up race morning I was disheartened to find the cold that started creeping up on me before Christmas was in full effect. Feeling a slight fever and coughing frequently, I knew the next couple of days were going to hurt. Loading up on cold medicine was the only way I was gonna make the race. I joked with my wife the night before by saying I had no business trying this race. With every excuse not to race, sick, injured, tired, and under trained I was determined to at least get 100 miles. Or at least not smart enough to know better.

Although we live in the desert, it still gets pretty chilly. The temperature at the start was hovering around mid to high 30s. Bundled up like a true Arizonan, you could tell who was from different climates by how little clothing they wore. Some people wore shorts and t shirts and others, like me had beanies, gloves, layers of clothes, and pants. It was very humorous to see the dichotomy between the two extremes.

The race starts and everyone heads out, beginning what will be the first of many 1 mile loops. Feeling great, I was able to run the first 15 miles before my family showed up to support me in my crazy endeavor. My kids took turns running the loop with me and enjoying the environment of the race. There’s something adorable about a 4 and 5 year old running along and passing people with their childish exuberance. It put things in perspective and gave me a lift seeing them running for the pure enjoyment of moving on foot in front of the other.

Fast forward many hours and many miles, the sun fell from the sky and brought the temperature down with it. 47 miles in and I was getting cold so I stop to change into dry clothes and bundle up like a Arizonan again. The long night gets lonely so I listened to a few audiobooks and slowed my pace to a walk. At one point I had to stop and take a brief nap which consisted of maybe an hour of sleep total.

Reluctantly, I bundled up again and headed out into the cold, dark wee hours of the morning to log more slow miles. Feeling good, I knew I still had a long way to go so I continued my turtle pace until the sun reappeared in the sky. Once the big ball of warmth and light was creeping over the eastern horizon, my energy seemed return and my pace quickened again.

Once I hit the 70 mile mark, I knew I was close but still had over a marathon to finish before I was at the 100 mile mark. So close but so far I kept my feet moving. By this time, my run slowed by a couple minutes a mile and my calculations put my running into the night again. At mile 80, I started feeling bad. Coughing up things from deep within my lungs told me I might have bitten off more than I could chew.

Pushing forward I was determined not to fail so I started running faster but not so fast as to use up any reserves I might have left. 10 miles to go and it seemed like it took forever. Bound to not give up I logged my100th mile at a blistering pace of 10:22/mile. Now that I had reached a major milestone, anything after was going to be icing on the cake. I slowed my pace to a 25min/mile and even that hurt. Sanity began to return and my logic told me that if I wanted to live to race another day, don’t push anymore. With this in mind, my new goal became 4 continuous marathons. At mile 106 I was mentally finished. Feeling sick, sore and happy to have accomplished a major goal, I decided I was going to take a break. Supporting friends that were still running and eating a lot of food I stayed after the sun went down.

My very close friend Greg was also running and was within 3 miles of 100 miles. He was also hurting so I decided misery loves company and joined him for his last 2 miles. Once Greg crossed the finish line, we looked at each other and knew we were done. Reaching a lofty goal that seems unattainable does something to ones outlook on the rest of life. It makes things the important things seem more important and the grey noise of life a little quieter.

No matter what your goals are, remember you can accomplish much more than you think. Whether it’s buying a house, running a race, or painting a picture, know that you CAN. Let us help you reach your goals for your next house and call us at MT Real Estate. You can do it!

MT Real Estate was founded on the principle that consumers are not served well by the existing business model of buying and selling homes. Founder Marc Sepulveda had an eye-opening experience when he was approached by friends for assistance in selling their home.